Many vapor phase particle production systems produce mixtures of particles and fluid. Typically, these mixtures are high in temperature and thus reactive. In some systems, these mixtures are quenched via introduction of a conditioning fluid. The conditioning fluid acts to cool the mixture and promote particle formation, and often acts as a carrier for the particles. Typically, particles are sampled or collected from the mixture following introduction of the conditioning fluid. Then, the conditioning fluid is vented to the ambient, or otherwise disposed. This disposal occurs because typical particle production systems require high purity gases as conditioning fluids. In many cases, the purity must be on the order of 99.9999% purity. The unit cost of particles produced using these methods is inflated by the need to use fresh fluid for each production run.
What is needed in the art is a way to reduce the costs associated with a vapor phase particle production system, while at the same time maintaining a high purity level for the system.